I'm fully aware of the risks and rewards of purchasing from abroad. I just wanted to bring balance to the discussion which was very positive and emphasizing the high reward bit equation of a risk.
Sure, saving a 3rd of the cost of a product is great but you could potentially loose two-thirds of the entire cost on the 15th day.
@niko, do you know who will be the distributor in Europe (I imagine it will be announced in this section of the forum)? Higher cost may be necessary but an underdog like Powerucc might start treading on the turf of the big boys with a cost of $300+. A RoadHawk HD has very similar spec to the Panorama II S and one thing I like about it is that it also has a full size SD card support. Can the Panorama compete on price and warranty (i.e., will the warranty jump from the current 14 days to match or even beat the two year warranty on the RH?). Niko, I saw you mentioning that the Panorama might come with Coach 14 which has two channels. Does that mean you could plug in another camera into it and record a 2nd feed? A feature like that would definitely swing my interest back on the Panorama and make me overlook its size disadvantage.
Sure, the RoadHawk is not perfect but here in the UK, the Sale of Goods Act dictates that the seller must not sell something which isn't fit for purpose and/or does not conform to its spec/description. So if you get a dodgy product which works half the time or has annoying glitches, within the first 6 months, the seller has little choice but to help you because the onus is on them to prove that any possible issue was caused by you. After 6 months, you have the same rights but then the burden of proof shifts over to the consumer.
So you may say something is a good deal because it is a 3rd off, but when you consider the unlimited support rights (rights as in law, not goodwill by the company) you wave when you go abroad, it may not seem such a good deal.